·P·U·L·S·E·
by Kayzar-Hermit
Summary: 15 Years since her last visit, and now an adult, Chihiro returns to the bathhouse to find it in ruins. Searching for Kamajii, Kohaku & Lin, she learns the story of what happened since she had left, and sets off to help those she had left behind.
1. Chapter 1: Echoes

**·P·U·L·S·E·**

**(A Spirited Away FanFiction)**

**Chapter.1 - Echoes**

It had been 15 years since that time. Since the time her life had been changed for the better. An experience too incompressible, that it could never be described with words, but only shown as a vivid medley of images. She had lived in the house for 7 years, just up the hill from the entrance that enticed her father. The ambiguity of its plastered walls creating enough mystery for him to want to investigate, as though he was a spy. The mother also enticed by the mystery. She though, was scared, and clung to her father's arm as he foolishly made his way into the forbidden land, where he gorged ironically like a pig upon the forbidden food. She was sickened by this repulsive act, still paranoid over the morals over the 'stealing' and from that moment, she wandered off to her fate, where magic and reality intertwined, where nothing was at it seems, and everything she ever deemed to be true, had to be forgotten, as she then struggled to look after herself for one of the first times in her life. Guided by a worker named Lin, and the boiler-man Kamajii, who both helped her achieve her goals, and ultimately save her parents, whilst showing her a world unimaginable in reality.

12 years on, and now Chihiro had grown up into a respectable member of society. The memories of her journey remain as faded thoughts that still flicker and entice her to return every now and then. However, Chihiro had grown up and moved away long ago, working as a novelist in Tokyo. She wrote children's stories. Mainly about characters that go on their own journeys through dream worlds and alternate realities. Chihiro had developed an affinity for the dream world since her experiences, and although she never physically went out of her way to go back, trying to find the world again, she did always wonder what it would be like if she went back. Her books had become world famous, and she was regarded as one of the best child authors around, with her stories being translated into many languages.

Finding herself back home after 15 years for a random get-together with her parents, Chihiro found herself in the familiar landscape. Driving up the drive in her Audi, (kindly bought by her Father on her 19th birthday) she found her mind wandering to the time long ago when a simple short cut turned into one of the most important experiences in her life. She drove around the twisty bends leading up to her house, slowing the car down as she noticed her father's shortcut. The grass had been allowed to grow wilder, since her last visit, and the passage seemed denser. A thousand thoughts flickered through her mind, debating whether to just investigate it for a brief moment once again. Eventually, she decided to see it just once more, and turned her car left, driving slowly through the narrow passage. The journey seemed much longer than when her father had first recklessly sped through the narrow path. Chihiro kept her eyes on the road, taking her journey a lot more cautiously than her father did. She quickly found the red entrance, which loomed up upon her. She braked quickly, skidding to a halt in front of the monument. Her heart raced as she saw the entrance again. It had been so long… She stepped out of the car, walking over to the monument. A small knee-high statue of two faces back to back…

"Janus…" Chihiro commented, "Looking at those coming in and out of the house…"

She looked up at the entrance, which was as tall as ever. Everything seemed so much older than when she was there first. The pink plaster walls were faded white, with chips in the painting revealing the plaster underneath it. The corridor was still dark and gloomy, as though it was trying to foreshadow danger ahead. Chihiro pressed on, feeling older, wiser and not afraid. She stepped forward, finding herself in a central chamber. There was a bench, within the room, as well as a fountain and pillars reaching high up into the ceiling. The room felt cold, and Chihiro pressed on, rushing through the chamber and outside into the wide-open fields. The grass was thicker and wilder than before. The entire landscape looked dreary, as though someone hadn't bothered to look after it, and let it grow into a wild place. Chihiro's heart sank at the sight of it all. Her first look upon the place was that of a beautiful field, with fresh green grass that swayed in the wind. Now it was like the aftermath of a war here... Chihiro walked through the landscape, towards the derelict houses littered around the place. Everything had changed since she last left. Many of the houses were old and falling apart, including some which were missing walls all together. The houses were no longer painted in a variety of vibrant colours, but were all faded blues and greys. She quickly found herself in the street, which resembled that of a thriving commercial district gone bust. Signs advertising food were hung askew, as though abandoned, and there was no sweet smell of cooked food that greeted her and her parents the first time. Chihiro felt sad inside, the world she once knew had changed drastically since her leave. Nothing was the same anymore. She quickly found the steps leading up to the bathhouse, and with a brisk run, rushed up them, shocked to see the sight before her.

The bathhouse in ruins. The bridge connecting the two islands together was broken, with large gaping holes at random intervals upon it. The bathhouse itself was a ruin though, with large sections of walls completely stripped away. There was no smoke coming from it's large chimneys, which instantly made Chihiro think of Kamajii. Where was he now if he was not keeping the fires of the bathhouse burning? The entrance to the bathhouse was in ruins itself. As though the door had been shattered completely by some force of some kind. She could see into the inner workings of the bathhouse, due to the missing walls. She could see the central column, with many of its staircases that spiralled upwards gone. She could see the sleeping dormitories, and Yubaba's office up in the distance. With a pain in her heart, she walked over to the bridge, getting ready to cross it. She stepped around the holes in the bridge, walking over to the railing and holding onto it as she leaned over the side, looking downward. The railway was still there, and didn't seem to have changed at all. As though it was confirming Chihiro's thoughts, a trains sped past, coming out of the tunnel from the island Chihiro had just left. Chihiro smiled, happy to see at least one recognisable sight. She turned around, looking at the ruined bathhouse, and stepped over to it. She quickly spotted the flap where Haku had led her to safety before giving her the mission. The flap was missing, and Chihiro bent down, crawling through the gap in the wall. She remembered how it used to look, the screen doors leading inside, the large flower decorations where they hid and spoke… The flowers had withered and died, and the screen door missing, revealing a large empty room with a dirty wooden floor. Chihiro looked around, trying to find the door that lead to the winding staircase. She quickly found it, pushing it open and standing on the narrow platform that connected the stairs to the boiler room. The stairs were old and mouldy. Chihiro bent down, pressing down one foot on the first step. It gave way instantly, and Chihiro opted to give up on the stairs. She turned around, heading back the way she came and walking through the gap in the wall and into the bathhouse. The entire place was empty, and Chihiro could make out no signs of life anywhere. She walked around through the once familiar landscape. The bathhouse was a wreck now. Walls were missing, panelling of floors missing, and the colours were faded completely. Even Chihiro found it hard to even believe that this used to be a thriving bathhouse that accommodated for hundreds of customers. She walked around all the different rooms, the baths were still stuck to the ground, but they looked like they hadn't been used in years. She quickly found the big tub, which had a large crack down the side of it. Chihiro remembered the time she was forced to clean the stink spirit, which turned out to be a powerful river guardian. She was successful in cleaning him, and was rewarded with a powerful herbal medicine for her work. Chihiro placed that event as one of her greatest achievements in life. The thought that she'd be able to clean up a monster that smelt and looked like a writhing monster of shit. With a sigh of regret, she walked away from the tub, trying to find her way down the boiler room. She quickly found the back passage Lin had showed her, and she quickly opened the door, finding the back-staircase that led to a variety of lifts and staircases that could take you to any floor within the bathhouse. Chihiro quickly made her way down the bathhouse, weary of using the stairs in fear they would break and send her plummeting downward. Cautiously, she made her way all the way down, and found the passage that led into the boiler room. With a deep breath of air, she slid it open, and stepped inside.


	2. Chapter 2: Hey You

**·P·U·L·S·E·**

**(A Spirited Away FanFiction)**

**Chapter.2 – Hey You**

Deserted…

It seemed even Kamajii had abandoned his boiler room. Chihiro surveyed the room. It was a total shambles. His desk was still there, but his drawers were broken, some of its contents sprawled across the floor. There were dried up, dead herbs lying all over the place. Chihiro sighed, looking at the drawers that spanned the length of the walls. Some of them were missing completely, whilst others left half open. Then something caught her eye. The area where the soot-balls walked across was completely clean, with no rubbish upon it. Chihiro rushed over, sitting on the floor in front of the holes in the walls.

"Hey, you in there?" she asked, peering into the small holes, looking for the soot balls. There didn't seem to be any sight of them, but she could see a large mound of debris and herbs at the back of the chamber, as well as some lumps of coal. She sighed as she remembered Kamajii's words from when she helped one of the soot-balls, explaining how they'd turn back into soot. She wiped away a tear, heading out of the boiler room, and back the way she came. She went back outside, looking at the completely deserted landscape. There was a breeze blowing through the horrid landscape.

"It's all gone…" she said to herself, another tear streaming down her face. She wiped it away, walking carefully across the bridge, trying to reach the other side.

"Holy hell, stand still!"

Chihiro stopped in her tracks, her eyes daring her to look around to the voice. She knew it came from behind her, from the bathhouse. With caution, she turned herself around, finding herself staring at a frogman. He looked almost comical. He wore a blue uniform with yellow strips running over his shoulders. She also wore a blue hat with a yellow strip around the bottom, and had a torch and a set of keys in his on a belt around his side.

"A human?" It exclaimed, acting almost as surprised to see Chihiro as she was surprised to see him, "What the hell are you doing here?"

Chihiro didn't answer, but stood still, unsure of what to do now. When she thought about it, she didn't know what she was going to do if she bumped into someone whilst taking another look at their world. The frogman sensed he wouldn't get an answer from her, and opted for a different approach.

"Who are you?" he asked, he then ruined it by forgetting the question and asking more, "What are you doing here? Human's shouldn't be here!"

"I've been here before," Chihiro said, trying to solve the heated battle that was beginning to arise, "My name's Chihiro,"

"Ain't never heard of no Chihiro," the frogman said, "Nope, nope, you shouldn't be here…"

"Well what about Sen? That's what everyone used to call me,"

"Nope, never heard of no Sen," he said, approaching her, "nope, nope, get out, right now, go, hop it,"

Chihiro watched as the guard came up to, pushing her across the bridge, being careful to guide her around the gaps, all the time complaining about how she shouldn't be here. Chihiro struggled free of his grip, turning around and facing him directly.

"Look here!" Chihiro said, "Stop pushing me around all right? If I need to go, then I'll go, but I need to know how to find Kamajii,"

The frogman looked at her oddly. It was obvious to Chihiro that he didn't meet many people in his line of work, and those he did meet didn't normally turn around asking ridiculous questions.

"The boiler-man Kamajii?" He asked her back, "You're looking for him?"

"Yes," answered Chihiro, "And Lin, a worker who used to work here, and Haku,"

The frogman scratched his head. This was too many names for him to remember. It was his job to guard the abandoned ruins of the bathhouse, not give intruders directions.

"Don't know what you're doing looking here then…" the frogman said, "Not sure about those others, but Kamajii has been living in Green's End for the last few years… You can get there by train easily,"

Chihiro's heart raced. She had a lead! She felt like hugging the frogman for his information.

"Where exactly? Where!" She asked.

"Number.8," the frogman said, "Just please, get going now,"

"Don't suppose you could do me a favour?" Chihiro asked, grinning.

"If it means you'll leave, then yes, anything,"

"Could you give me some change to get the train?"

The frogman sighed, digging into his pockets and taking out some small crumpled notes. He handed 3 of them over to Chihiro.

"Now get out!" He said.

"But I need to go through the bathhouse to get to the back door that's closest to the station," Chihiro said. The frogman ran a hand across his face, slowly becoming more and agitated. He sighed, walking back to the bathhouse and signalling for Chihiro to follow him. Chihiro smiled as she followed the guard back through the bathhouse, through some back-stairs and to the back door. He opened it, grimacing as Chihiro thanked him, walking out of the door and onto the ground.

"Thank you!" she called back, waving. The frogman grunted, courteously smiling back and giving a slight wave, but nothing more. Chihiro walked across the ground. Unlike last time, there was no water here, and the ground was an odd landscape of dips and slopes. Chihiro quickly found herself on the platform, and sat down at the bench, waiting for the train to come. She ran a hand through her brown hair, which she had allowed to grow long. She stretched her arms, yawning and waiting in anticipation for the train. She couldn't wait to see Kamajii again. Soon enough, the train came along, and Chihiro flagged it down, watching as the doors opened up, allowing her on.

"Hello, Green's End please," She said, handing over the crumpled notes to the conductor. The conductor took the notes, unfolding them and looking at them. He put them into his pocket, taking out 2 small coins and giving them to Chihiro. Chihiro thanked him as she took her seat by the window, staring out of it.

The beginning of her new journey.


	3. Chapter 3: Signs of Life

**·P·U·L·S·E·**

**(A Spirited Away FanFiction)**

**Chapter.3 – Signs of Life**

The train drove off away from the station. Chihiro sat back, staring out of the window. There were several other people on the train. All shadowy figures like the conductor, with shadow-like bodies. Chihiro watched the world around her fly past. She spotted the solitary house again, sitting upon a small island all on its own. They quickly past the crossroad, though this time, the road it was attached to wasn't submerged under water. The road spanned way off into the countryside, far off into the horizon. They past many stations, some of which Chihiro didn't recognise. One of them had many shadowy figures standing by it, some heading into the small staircase that lead underground, some heading out of it towards the train. Chihiro sighed, thinking to herself. What happened here? The bathhouse was there for souls to replenish themselves, what happened to make it become the way it is? She sighed as she blinked her eyes, her eyes settling on a station heading towards them. The train slowed down, and Chihiro noticed the sign on the platform read 'Green's End'. Chihiro stood up off the seat, making her way off of the train. She thanked the conductor as she passed him, finding herself standing on a platform. The weather seemed different, much brighter than what it was like at the bathhouse. There was a sun shining, and the sky was much more blue. Chihiro turned around, standing on the platform as the train slowly pulled away, slowly at first before building more and more momentum.

Chihiro looked around, feeling once again, alone as there was no one left standing with her. She looked around at the landscape, it spanned out way beyond into the horizon. She could hardly make out the shape of the mountain where the bathhouse stood. There was a road to her left that led into a plot of yellow fields that seemed to stretch for ages. She turned around, walking down the dirt road towards the fields. She found herself walking for a while, gazing at endless amounts of fields. They just didn't seem to stop. It was a while before she found any houses, and when she did, they were situated away from the road, with smaller pathways leading up to them. The post-boxes read out different numbers, none of them number.8. The frogman had been very vague, Chihiro thought. She sighed, leaning against the post of a fence that divided up the road from the field. She reminisced about how she thought she'd be able to walk along the tracks to make her way back to the bathhouse. Looking back at how long the journey was, she couldn't see how she'd have possibly been able to make that journey, but nevertheless, she said she'd do it, and this task was much smaller than that.

She started walking again, spotting yet again another house in the distance. She quickly found the small pathway that led up to it, and the post-box read 'Number.8', scratched on in scruffy handwriting. She smiled with excitement, setting off into a brisk run down the small dirt pathway that led up to the house. The house itself was fairly large, which made sense, considering who it had to cater for. There was a small wisp of smoke coming from the chimney, and Chihiro smiled, the smoke reminding her of Kamajii. She quickly found herself at the door, and taking in a deep breath of air, she reached out a hand, and knocked.


	4. Chapter 4: Any Colour You Like

**·P·U·L·S·E·**

**(A Spirited Away FanFiction)**

**Chapter.4 – Any Colour You Like**

Chihiro stepped back, waiting in anticipation behind the closed door. There came a long while of silence before the sound of clattering and movement came from behind the door. The noise grew louder as the clattering came closer towards the door. Chihiro couldn't help gasp in shock as the door opened, revealing a large person with 6 elongated arms and two short legs sticking out from behind.

"Hello?" The spider-man asked inquisitively. He wasn't Kamajii. He had long brown hair and no moustache that Kamajii had sported. Chihiro's stomach turned slightly at the sight of him. She was disappointed that it wasn't Kamajii, but intrigued to know there were others like him.

"Um… Hello," Chihiro said nervously, shuffling slightly by the door, "I was wondering if… Kamajii was in?"

The spider-man frowned slightly before turning away from Chihiro. Chihiro watched as he told her to stay there, and then walked inside the house. Chihiro stood anxiously as she waited. She peered inside the house, looking at the odd furniture and furnishings. There was a fireplace, which on the mantelpiece stood an old wooden clock, and a number of different oddly shaped ornaments that Chihiro couldn't recognise. There was also a large armchair, whose colourful red pattern looked worn and faded. There was the sound of movement, and Chihiro watched as a familiar face came towards her.

"Chihiro!" Kamajii said, smiling at her. Chihiro smiled as he looked at him more closely. His face looked worn and faded, and he had allowed more than just his moustache to grow, which now curled down away from his face, joining in with a thick thin beard that stretched down close to the ground. He was still wearing the glasses that sat upon his oddly shaped head, but he was no longer wearing his work clothes, but instead was wearing a blue shirt that had extra arms that stretched along his long arms, and a violent green set off trousers. He walked over to Chihiro on his arms, embracing her in another two. Chihiro returned the gesture.

"It's been so long," Chihiro said, trying to repress the feeling to cry. Kamajii gently guided her into the house, closing the door with one of his arms. He sat her down on the faded-red armchair she had noticed moments ago, and watched as Kamajii wandered around the house.

"Can I get you something to drink?" he asked her. Chihiro thought about it before answering. She'd forgotten what they drink in this world.

"Um… a glass of water would be nice," Chihiro, answered, secretly hoping that they drank water. Kamajii looked at her oddly for the briefest of moments, and Chihiro felt awkward, thinking that she'd obviously said something wrong.

"What colour?" Kamajii asked. Chihiro looked at him oddly. She didn't know water could come in different colours.

"Any colour you like," she said. Kamajii smiled as he left the room, leaving Chihiro sat upon the chair. She folded her legs, waiting patiently for Kamajii to return. She reminisced as she waited, remembering the times when she was young and wasn't likely to stay seated patiently for someone. She'd have much rather got up and walked around than staying seated. But for her, times had changed. She had grown older and more mature. Soon enough, Kamajii returned, and in two of his hands he held glasses containing bright coloured liquids. Kamajii handed Chihiro the red one, who took it and drank from it, surprised to find the coloured liquid tasteless. Kamajii then took a seat opposite Chihiro, looking at her, smiling.

"Tell me Chihiro," he said in a warm voice that made Chihiro feel more comfortable, "Where've you been all this time?"

Chihiro smiled as she started to remember. Before long, she had told Kamajii all about how Haku had led her out of the spirit world when she had last come, how she had then woken up in her bed, and believed it had all been a dream. How she had started growing up, completed school, college and then started publishing books about the experiences she had gone through. Kamajii seemed interested in all of this, and didn't pause her to ask questions. As Chihiro started explaining each of her stories, Kamajii stopped her.

"They're all stories that happened to you right?" he asked her. Chihiro smiled, nodding and Kamajii clapped two of his hands.

"But why come back now though?" he then asked. Chihiro smiled, reaching into her back pocket and pulling out a small hair band. She held it out in her hand, and Kamajii stretched one of his hands over, taking the hair-band in his hand. The hair-band was bright pink and sparkling.

"When did you get this?" Kamajii asked.

"The night before I left. When I went to Swamp Bottom. I met Yubaba's twin sister Zeniba. Her. No-Face, and Yubaba's baby… they all helped to make it. I forgot all about it though until a few weeks ago when I found it after searching through some old boxes. I then made arrangements to meet up with my parents, just as an excuse to come down here and see you all"

She smiled as she said this, and Kamajii seemed grateful for her gesture of returning. He then turned away, looking bothered by something, and Chihiro watched in confusion as Kamajii sighed.

"You've come at a bad time though," he said. Chihiro blinked, unsure of what to do. Kamajii noticed this and started waving his hands frantically, "Not that you're not welcome here! It's certainly a pleasure to see you again but… The lands… this world. It's fallen into dark times…" he said gravely. Chihiro frowned, unsure of what to do. She took another gulp of the red water and watched as Kamajii hoisted himself off of the chair with his huge long arms. He paced the living room slowly.

"We've fallen upon bad times Chihiro… I never thought it could happen but…"

"But what?" Chihiro asked, anxious to know what had happened to the lands. Kamajii took a deep breath of air before answering.

"We're in war now…" Kamajii said.

Chihiro blinked, unable to completely comprehend the seriousness of Kamajii's comment. As the silence built up, her understanding grew until she stared at Kamajii wide-eyed. She then jumped out of her chair, dropping the glass, which shattered, on the floor, spilling red water all over the floor.

"What about everyone then? Lin? Haku… Sorry wait… Kohaku…What about Yubaba and Zeniba? What's happened to them all? How did this war happen?"

Kamajii took a deep breath of air, looking deeply sorry for something, and Chihiro stepped back, anxiously having a feeling that she knew what he was going to say.

"Kohaku hasn't been seen since you left. He went back to his river, guarding it again, but when he heard of the war, he returned. It all started when the guardian of the underworld passed away…"

"Wait, he passed away?" Chihiro asked, completely confused, "I thought they were all spirits and stuff…"

"That's true, but despite this, we can still pass away… It's peculiar really, our kind of death,"

"What happens?" asked Chihiro curiously, trying to remember to ask about the war in the back of her mind, despite it already being busy as it raced with ideas of how spirits could die. Kamajii smiled at her before answering.

"I'm glad you're older you know," he said first, Chihiro smiling at the compliment, "When we first met you, I doubt you would have been old enough to understand this. Before I tell you how we die, let me tell you how you and your people die. In your world, when you die, your spirit leaves your body, and you end up in this world. Over here, as a spirit, you live what you might describe as a second life, but when you pass away here, you move over back into your world, as a new body… Kind of like reincarnation to put it in simpler terms,"

Chihiro stared wide-eyed, amazed at the revelation of how life and death worked not only within the spirit world, but in her own world too. She was amazed that there was also a much more deeper connection between the two worlds, than just a gateway through an old abandoned carnival.

"So… what's the underworld then? Going back to that…" Chihiro asked, eager to listen. Kamajii took another deep breath for beginning.

"The underworld is where those in your world, who committed evil acts are sent too…"

"Oh, like hell?" Chihiro asked, unaware of her interrupting until Kamajii frowned.

"What's hell?" he asked. Chihiro shook her head and Kamajii shrugged before continuing.

"You see, in the spirit world, the only kinds of spirits you've met are those who are good, or at the very least were sorry for their sins. Those who didn't repent, they were sent to the underworld… Which is hardly a topic for pleasant discussion I might add…"

He shuddered and Chihiro felt the atmosphere within the small house intensify. She watched as Kamajii rubbed his shoulders with two of his hands, his tiny eyes shrunk into his small tiny head perched upon his oddly shaped body. Chihiro took another gulp of the drink before asking her next question.

"So, how did this war happen then?" She asked. Kamajii rubbed his beard, trailing a finger all the way down from his chin to the curl at the bottom of his beard.

"The guardian of the underworld, one Kazechi, passed away a few months ago. Some believe that he just naturally passed away, considering he was a few thousand, thousand years old, but if you ask me, spirits like him don't just pass away so easily. Take Yubaba and Zeniba for example, they're even older than he was. Anyway… With no one guarding the underworld, the evil spirits simply took over, causing chaos within the entire spiriting world. The spirit council managed to stop the worst from happening, but there are still battlefields out there with spirits attacking each other… So many spirits have been called out to war, hence why the bathhouse is closed. They were lucky they left when they did. An attack was launched against it, but when they went inside, there was nobody there… Except for a guard, but he stayed hidden and contacted the council, and a counter-attack was launched, eliminating a large portion of their army…"

Chihiro nodded, understanding everything now. It made perfect sense, considering the state the bathhouse had been in when she had arrived earlier that day. Kamajii took another breath of air as Chihiro sat there, thinking to herself.

"What happened to Lin then? And Kohaku?" she asked. Kamajii looked away for a moment, trying to avoid eye contact with Chihiro.

"Like I said, Kohaku went to fight in the war… As for Lin, she had to leave the bathhouse like every other worker. Rumours is she's working in a munitions factory, helping build weapons… But I'm not so sure if that's true or not. I just assume it is, considering how many women are now working in the factories."

Chihiro nodded again, understanding more and more of it now. There was one detail, which was confusing her though, and she shuffled uncomfortably as she got ready to as Kamajii.

"What then… Well, I mean… What are you doing then for the war?" Chihiro asked. She watched as Kamajii's face dropped, and immediately regretted asking, "Oh I'm sorry," she quickly said, "I didn't mean anything by it…" Kamajii then raised one of his hands, stopping her.

"No it's perfectly fine," he said, "I'm… I'm retired finally, and I'm staying here with my brother now,"

"You're brother?" Chihiro said, surprised. At that moment, his brother walked in on his huge arms, standing by Kamajii.

"Chihiro, meet Remayus, my brother," Kamajii said, indicating to Remayus, who just grunted impolitely at Chihiro. Chihiro stared at Remayus, who showed no signs of politeness. Chihiro, feeling she had obviously outstayed her welcome, slowly got onto her feet.

"Well, it's been thoroughly wonderful seeing you again Kamajii," she said, smiling, "But I'd better get going. There are some things I'd like to do,"

"Oh but of course," Kamajii said, smiling and getting up. He guided Chihiro towards the door. Chihiro stepped out of the door before turning around and facing Kamajii and embracing him in a huge hug. As he gently let her go, she stayed standing on the spot.

"I was wondering, if you could do one more thing for me…" she asked him.

"You're wondering where can you find Kohaku right?" he said. Chihiro nodded, smiling at the fact that he knew what she was going to ask, "You won't be able to find him, but I can tell you where Lin is. She might know…"

Chihiro nodded, only slightly bothered that he didn't know where Haku was. She watched as Kamajii stretched two of his arms over his back, and from nowhere produced a piece of paper and a pen, onto which he wrote a note. He passed the paper over to Chihiro.

"You might be able to find Lin there," Kamajii said. He then hugged her again and gently let her go, "You have a good journey okay? You'll want to catch a train, which reminds me…" He reached another arm over his back and produced a thick wad of paper notes, which he handed over to Chihiro, who stared at them reluctantly.

"I can't take that!" she said, shocked by the amount. Kamajii laughed at her refusal.

"Don't worry… When the bathhouse closed, we all finally got paid. Everyone's rich! Take it, it's a pittance compared to what I've actually got!"

Chihiro reluctantly took the notes, thanking Kamajii for his kindness. She then turned around, walking down the dirt pathway away from the house. She turned around once to wave at Kamajii, who waved back at her with his long arm outstretched. She then turned around, heading back towards the train-station, and towards the journey awaiting her.


	5. Chapter 5: On The Run

**·P·U·L·S·E·**

**(A Spirited Away FanFiction)**

**Chapter.5 – On The Run**

She'd been travelling for the best part of a day. The directions on Kamajii's note led to a far-away city that Chihiro had never heard of. The train had driven down the track all evening, passing many sights that Chihiro had remembered from her last visit, including a moment of flashing neon lights that blinked from beyond the windows, and the station at Swamp Bottom. As they drifted past Swamp Bottom, Chihiro found herself looking out of the window at sights she did not recognise. She immediately noticed they had pulled into a large forest that seemed to engulf the surroundings around her. She peered out of the window, noticing that the track only just seemed to fit in amongst the trees.

After a while, after the sun had set in behind the trees, the land turned dark, and it became harder to see the track ahead of them. Even though it was difficult to see outside, Chihiro still noticed when they had left the forest, and she found herself looking at a nighttime image of a wide landscape full of hills that stretched far off into the distance. Some of the hills were divided up with hedges, with houses placed at various points along the hedges. After an hour of passing the fields, Chihiro started to feel drowsy, and looked around the train-carriage, watching as a great number of shadowy-spirits started to lie down on the benches. Chihiro couldn't tell if they were sleeping, as they had no distinguishable faces, but she took a leaf from their book and lifted her legs, resting them on the bench and lying down. She closed her eyes, and quickly found herself drifting off into a deep sleep.

She was awoken suddenly by a sudden lurch in the train. She watched as many passengers were thrown from their seats, as baggage fell of the racks and as the conductor fell down to the floor. There was a great deal of murmuring from the various passengers, and Chihiro sat up, staring out of the window. She first realised she must have been sleeping for quite a long time, as it was nearly daybreak, but she then noticed a large column of smoke in the distance which distracted her from everything else she was thinking. In the distance, she then spotted what seemed like a black cloud heading towards the train. As the cloud came closer, the sound of shouting and laughter intensified, until Chihiro realised the cloud was actually a congregation of bandits, all heading towards the train. There was a scream from one passenger, and Chihiro froze on the spot. She wanted to run and hide but found she couldn't. The bandits soon came near the train, and there was a great moment of fear and anticipation as the shouting intensified. Chihiro's legs finally unglued themselves from the bench, and she threw herself under it, just in time as a flaming torch was thrown through the window, smashing the glass and landing on the opposite bench, slowly burning the wooden bench. Chihiro screamed as she got up and ran down the length of the carriage, all around her shouting and screaming from the bandits. She had made it to the door at the end of the carriage and was attempting to pull it open when all the windows of the carriage seemed to explode at the same time as bandits poured inside. Chihiro put all her strength into opening the door, and managed to slide it open and jump out. She landed on the track, and began running down the length of track away from the bandits who were attacking the train. She spared no look back, too frightened to do so, and just kept on running, away from the danger. She ran down the length of the track, her legs just moving underneath her as she followed the track in the dark. The sound of the screaming and shouting died away as Chihiro ran further and further away.

She didn't know how long she had been running for, but breath was in short gasps as she found herself at a deserted station. She stood on the station, gasping for breath as she collapsed onto her knees. The station was deserted, and Chihiro wrapped her arms around herself, shivering in the cold as she stood on the empty station. She looked back at the train for the first time since she ran from it, and was surprised with herself to see that she couldn't see it. She took a deep breath of air as she looked around, looking for a way off of the station. She turned around and found a small path leading away from the station that led up towards a small village seemingly located in the middle of nowhere. Chihiro, rubbing her cold arms started walking towards the village, reasoning with herself that she didn't have many other options.

She had just made it to the village when she collapsed in exhaustion.


	6. Chapter 6: Coming Back to Life

**·P·U·L·S·E·**

**(A Spirited Away FanFiction)**

**Chapter.6 – Coming Back to Life**

Chihiro woke up in a daze, finding her vision blurred and obscured as she tried to open her eyes. When she finnaly opened them, she found herself staring at a wooden ceiling, and immediately she jumped up in the bed, finding herself lying down on a bed that she did not recognise. The duvet covering her was a thick woollen blue duvet. She looked around, and found that she was in a small rustic room containing the bed she was lying on, an old drawer in the far distance, which had a mirror perched upon it. In the mirror, she could see the reflection of a wardrobe, and she twisted her head around, staring at the huge wardrobe, which barely fitted in the room.

There was a knock on the door, and Chihiro jumped up as the door swung open. In walked a young woman, roughly around Chihiro's age. Chihiro looked at her closely, realising that she was actually an elf, and not a human. She wore simple clothes, but had pointed ears sticking out from the sides of her head. Chihiro watched as she walked in, carrying a bowl of water with a towel in it. Chihiro sat up in the bed as the Elf approached her.

"Good morning," the elf said warmly, "I hope you're feeling better now,"

Chihiro nodded, nervous of how to act in the unknown environment. She didn't know who these people were, or why they were deciding to help her. The elf placed the bowl on the small table next to Chihiro, and placed the wet towel on her head. Chihiro blushed in embarrassment, unsure of what to do.

"Where am I?" she asked, feeling annoyed with herself for not thanking them first, but instead asking a ridiculous question. The elf smiled as she dabbed at her forehead. The more the elf dabbed, the warmer and more full of strength Chihiro began to feel.

"You're in Myrke Town," the elf said, "We found you at the station, you were in a right state… what happened?"

Chihiro thought about it. She couldn't remember much of what had happened. She remembered the train being attacked by spirit bandits, and her running down the length of track until she reached the station. She remembered falling to the ground, exhausted, but nothing more.

"I… don't know," she answered, "I… was on the train, and then… these bandits came and attacked us…"

The elf shook her head, looking very grave and Chihiro felt her stomach lurched in anticipation of finding out something she didn't much feel like wanting to find out.

"Those weren't bandits," the elf said, "They're the underworld army… They're calling themselves the Pulses… I thought you'd know that already though," the elf added. Chihiro realised then just how little she actually knew about what was going on. It was all well and good going to find Lin and Kohaku, but there was so much politics going on, that it seemed to hinder Chihiro's efforts.

"I need to go," Chihiro said, sitting up, "There's places I have to be…" The elf immediately began fussing, forcing Chihiro to lie back down.

"You're in no state to be going yet," the elf said, "not until you're properly rested and had something to eat,"

`Chihiro reluctantly agreed, and found herself lying back down on the bed. The elf had left her alone, but Chihiro was unable to sleep. There was so much on her mind. The war seemed to have not only been isolated to areas where the armies were fighting, but into residential areas where innocent people were living in. The thoughts worried Chihiro, and pushed her into making her journey sooner rather than later.

After a few hours, the elf came back inside carrying a tray, which had a glass of (clear) water on it and a bowl of a murky brown liquid. Chihiro eyed the bowl apprehensively, slowly dipping her spoon in and tasting it as a curtsy to the elf. To her surprise, the soup tasted delicious, and Chihiro gulped it down ravenously. Since coming over to the world, she couldn't remember the last time she had eaten. When she had finished, the elf took away her tray, and returned to help Chihiro out of the bed. Chihiro was then guided out of the room. As they walked down hallways and past rooms, Chihiro looked around, thinking how the room looked very little like a traditional Japanese house. Everything seemed quite… European in the house. Everything from the wallpaper to the furnishings.

They eventually walked into a room, which to Chihiro's surprise, though she did not know why, was holding more elves. There were 3 new elves standing in the room, and Chihiro could tell they were all related to the elf that had been helping her. They all had the same narrow eyes and brown hair. One of them was stirring a pan that was boiling on a stove, whilst the others were seated down at the table. The elf who had been helping Chihiro gestured for her to sit down, and Chihiro thanked her as she took her seat, sitting down as all the elves sat, looking at her.

"I can't say how grateful I am for your help," Chihiro began, talking to the elves, "I don't know where I would be if you hadn't have come found me,"

"It's no problem," said one of the elves, a male one. "What were you doing out there at that time of night anyway?"

Chihiro glanced at the elf who'd been helping her, who gave her a slight nod. Chihiro looked around for re-telling her story.

"I was on the train when it was attacked by bandits… sorry! I mean, the Pulses. I managed to escape from the train, and I ran down the tracks until I collapsed at the station…"

The elves all looked around at each other, giving each other nods and murmurs. Two started conversing in a language that Chihiro did not recognise nor understand, and she began to feel more embarrassed as time dragged on. After about 5 minutes of what felt like silence, Chihiro decided to speak again.

"Look, I'm grateful for all you've done, but I do need to be going now," Chihiro said. "I need to get to Cirrus Minor," She then stood up, and all of the elves stood up as well, looking grave.

"You can't expect to make it there alone do you?" one of the elves asked, and Chihiro shrugged. The elf shook her head, and then turned to the others, as they conversed in their language. After a while, they turned to face Chihiro again.

"Dyolf will escort you," said one, boldly. Chihiro blinked as she stood there, looking confused by the sudden change of plans.

"Huh?" She said dumbly.

"Dyolf will escort you. I can't bear to think what might happen if you if we let you go on your own now…"

Chihiro stood there, bewildered and confused. She couldn't understand why these seemingly strangers were willing to help her, and during such dangerous times as well.

"Um… I appreciate your help, but I have to ask," Chihiro began, "Why are you doing this?"

The elves all looked to each other before looking back at Chihiro again.

"We just believe in loving your neighbours," one of the elves said, "We're just the kinds of beings that can't bear to see another being suffer. We want to do anything we can to stop that from happening,"

Chihiro stood there, still confused as to their motives. She reasoned then just to thank them all for helping her and get on her way. They all escorted her to the door, and sure enough the elf Dyolf started to follow her. They all waved goodbye to the elves, and as Chihiro stepped outside, she saw herself staring at a beautiful green field that seemingly stretched off for miles and miles. The sight was just beautiful, and it pained Chihiro to think that if this war continues on the way it is doing, that all of this could be destroyed. She glanced at Dyolf, who looked deep in thought.

"It seems that it is too dangerous to travel by train anymore…" Dyolf said. Chihiro nodded.

"What do you suggest then?" Chihiro asked, wondering what other types of transportation there are within the world. Dyolf turned to face her, with a look of an amused grin on his face.

"Plane,"


	7. Chapter 7: Learning to Fly

**·P·U·L·S·E·**

**(A Spirited Away FanFiction)**

**Chapter.7 – Learning to Fly**

Chihiro and Dyolf walked away from the house, walking down a number of dirt paths that led far away from the house. The sun was shining brightly, and Chihiro's eyes were fixed upon the beautiful sights all around her. The fields, the sky, which had hundreds of clouds scratched upon it. They walked for a few miles, until the house they had left shrunk in the distance until it wasn't there anymore. Eventually, Chihiro found herself and Dyolf walking towards a village. The village was small, made up by a few houses, a few warehouses and some shops that seemed to either sell food or mechanical parts. Dyolf led her through the village, and they arrived at one shop, which was easily the biggest shop in the whole village. They walked inside, ringing a small bell as they swung the door open. The shop owner looked up as he heard the bell. He was a short person with the face of a pig. It took a short while for Chihiro to realise that the owner was indeed a pig. He wore small round spectacles that enlarged his eyes to ridiculous proportions, and he had a balding head. He approached Dyolf, straining his neck to look up at him.

"Dyolf!" he said in a small gruff voice, "I've not seen you for a while, how've you been?"

"Fine Alabast," Dyolf said, shaking the small pig's hand, "To be honest, I'm not here on a social visit,"

"Doesn't surprise me," Alabast said, grinning, "When are you ever?"

Alabast then stopped, and peered around Dyolf, noticing Chihiro, who blushed in embarrassment for reasons she did not know. Alabast looked carefully at Chihiro, squinting his magnified eyes before looking shocked.

"A human! Here, in my store!" he exclaimed, surprised, he rushed over to Chihiro, and grabbed her hands, shaking them roughly, "My, my, my, what an honour!"

Chihiro looked at him, smiling courteously whilst being slightly worried. Alabast led them out of the shop, and they went around the back of the building, and inside a warehouse, where Chihiro saw a number of small planes. They were all basic bi-planes designed to carry only one or two people. They were all in a number of different colours, from bright reds to dull blues. Chihiro was in awe at the prospect of flying over the country. She watched intently as Dyolf conversed with Alabast, and after a few minutes of their talking, Alabast then loudly began to guide her and Dyolf around the warehouse, pointing out each individual aircraft and their strengths and weaknesses.

"…and this one here, I'd say is your obvious choice. Light, speedy and nimble. You see on the back, the machine gun. This little guy is small but packs a punch! Also the fuel consumption is something that cannot be beat. A gallon of fuel and you can fly halfway across the world, no joke!"

Dyolf looked carefully at the plane. It was a small plane with just one propeller at the front, and two seats and was painted a deep red colour. Dyolf watched as he nodded to himself, and then turned to Alabast to buy the plane from him. The transaction was made quickly, and Chihiro watched as Alabast ordered for his assistants to fuel the plane and equip Dyolf and Chihiro. An assistant walked over to Chihiro, passing her a leather helmet with goggles attached to them. She turned to Dyolf, who was busy putting his onto his head, with the goggles slid up onto his forehead. Chihiro shrugged her shoulders, and put the helmet on.

"Chihiro, come on!" said Dyolf. Chihiro looked at him oddly, as though there was something she was missing. She shrugged it off, and walked over to the plane, which Dyolf was climbing into. He sat himself in the pilot seat, and watched as Chihiro clambered into the passenger seat in front of the gun. They both placed the goggles over their eyes, and one of Alabast's assistants grabbed the propeller and pulled at it, forcing it to spin around. The engine soon started, and the warehouse was filled with the sound of the roar of the engine. Chihiro felt her seat vibrate from the power of the engine, and then felt the entire plane slowly slide forward, and Dyolf guided it out of the warehouse. Two huge doors slid out from the warehouse, revealing a large runway that stretched on into the horizon. Dyolf drove the plane down the runway, and as the plane built up momentum, Chihiro could feel her seat slowly rise into the air, until Dyolf guided straight up, and they darted straight up towards the sky. They flew straight into the white clouds, and came out on the other side facing a blue sky like a canvas. Chihiro couldn't hide her awe. She gasped in amazement at the sights she was seeing. From way up high she could see far out into the world. The fields stretched out for miles and miles, and every now and then there was the image of a small village or even a city. Far out into the distance, she could see swamp bottom, and the small track that connected it with the neighbouring villages. The only thing she could see of the bathhouse was a small pinprick. Chihiro's long brown hair was thrown wildly askew, and for the briefest of minutes, she felt like small child again.

"You see that small dot way off into the distance?" Dyolf called. Chihiro peered around, and saw a small area that was indistinguishable. "That's where we're heading. Cirrus Minor. It's going to take an hour at most… kay?"

"Sure thing," Chihiro called out. She sat back and enjoyed the sights as they passed by. From up high, she could see so much. Fields of crops, some with animals in them being reared for wool or meats. They passed over villages, and from up high Chihiro could see the small dots representing people. The experience was just inspiring for Chihiro as they flew in the sky.

The plane suddenly lurched violently to the left, and Chihiro felt the air get forced out of her lungs. She looked up in panic at Dyolf, who was twisting the plane in and around.

"What's wrong?" Chihiro asked

"The pulses…" Dyolf said. Chihiro turned her head around, and saw 3 planes heading towards them at an alarming speed. They were all a dark black in colour, and crudely dived in and out of the clouds. "Hold on," Dyolf said, and suddenly Chihiro's stomach lurched as Dyolf swerved the plane down. Chihiro's hair was blown wildly askew from the sides of her helmet as they dived deeper and deeper through the air. The distant ground came rushing towards them at an alarming rate, and Chihiro's breath was completely taken away by the sheer rush she was experiencing. There was a sudden sound of gunfire, and Chihiro twisted her head around, and noticed that the planes were now firing at them.

"Fire back!" Dyolf shouted. Chihiro looked at the back of his head as he concentrated on flying the plane.

"What?" Chihiro asked, not hearing it the first time. Dyolf then twisted his head around, blindingly flying the plane.

"Chihiro, fire the gun!" he shouted, staring at her. Chihiro looked into his eyes, hidden behind the goggles, and then it hit her. The thing that had been bothering her since they had left the house. How did Dyolf know her name? As far as she was concerned, she had never mentioned it to him or any of the elves once. She stared at him in amazement and shock, all the time gunfire flying around the plane. A stream of bullets hit the side of the plane, and knocked Chihiro out of her stupor. She saved the thought for later, and turned around in her seat, grabbing onto the handles of the large gun. She pulled the trigger, and was shocked as a stream of bullets flew out from the barrel of the large gun, and flew across the sky, connecting with one of the planes. The plane exploded in the sky, and Chihiro was partially shocked by the thought of blowing up a plane. Then a bullet ripped into the side of the plane again and all sympathy was suddenly lost. Chihiro twisted the gun around, aiming it at the planes, firing round after round after round. Her aim was thrown askew with every twist and turn Dyolf made with the plane, and she watched as her stream of bullets flew in nearly every direction. She willed for the bullets to hit the other planes, but with Dyolf's dangerous but necessary driving, it seemed an impossible task. Chihiro then pumped the bullets out of the gun, twisting it in every direction hoping that at least one bullet could hit its mark. Sure enough, there was an explosion in the sky, and Chihiro cheered to herself for her victory. All that was left was the last plane to bring down, which seemed to be flying almost as dangerously as Dyolf was.

A stream of bullets hit the side of the plane, and Chihiro, angry with the pulse in the plane, fired a continuous stream of bullets. She watched the bullets flew out endlessly and hit the plane, which exploded in the sky. Chihiro bounced joyfully on her seat.

"I did it Dyolf!" she exclaimed, turning around in her seat. She then realised that there was severe problem. A large column of black smoke was coming out from one side of the plane, and the wing on the same side was in tatters. She then saw Dyolf desperately try to guide the plane as it spun perilously towards the ground. Dyolf swore as he grabbed the controls of the plane, desperately trying to guide it with its one wing intact. Chihiro felt her heart race increase as the ground came closer and closer. She then felt the plane slowly tilt upwards, and just as the ground was about to meet them, the plane pulled up slowly, and they hovered over the ground.

"I'm going to have to land her… I don't know how much we're off course though," Dyolf remarked. Chihiro nodded even though Dyolf couldn't see her. The plane lurched violently as Dyolf connected the landing gear with the ground. He struggled to maintain the plane, and it rolled across the ground, connecting with a tree that threw Chihiro forward. She hit her head against the plane, and when she lifted it up, found she had a small oozing cut on her forehead. Slightly shaken, she climbed out of the plane, watching as Dyolf ripped off his helmet and threw it aside in rage. Chihiro slowly took hers off, and placed it inside the plane.

"Is everything alright Dyolf?" Chihiro asked. Dyolf nodded unconvincingly. "Where are we?" she then asked. Dyolf rolled his eyes, frustrated with himself more than anything. He put a hand over his eyes, shielding them from the sunlight, and looked around into the distance. Chihiro looked around, and she realised they were standing in a huge large field with nothing growing in it. It was like a desert of dirt to her. She looked at Dyolf as he removed his hand and turned to her.

"We're in the plains…" Dyolf said.


	8. Chapter 8: Wot's Uh The Deal?

**·P·U·L·S·E·**

**(A Spirited Away FanFiction)**

**Chapter.8 – Wot's… Uh The Deal?**

Chihiro rubbed her back, which seemed to be aching after the rocky landing. Her head was bleeding, but it was hardly the most important matter to be addressed. How and why did Dyolf know her name? She could never remember mentioning it, to either him or any of the other elves. She had woken up inside their house, being tended to, yet she hadn't told them who she was, yet Dyolf seemed to know her name.

"Come on, we've got quite a walk ahead of us," Dyolf murmured. He turned and started walking across the plains, but Chihiro stood her ground, standing by the smouldering plane. Dyolf walked forward a few paces before turning around and spotting her. "Come on!" he shouted, frowning. Chihiro walked over, looking furious.

"How do you know my name!" she screamed, stamping her foot on the ground. Dyolf looked at her, shocked and surprised.

"Huh?" he said dumbly. Chihiro lashed out, aiming weak punches at him. Dyolf stepped back feebly, easily blocking the blows.

"What is this? Why do you know my name! I've not told it to anyone, so how can you know!" she screamed and screamed, continuously trying to hurt Dyolf until tears streamed down her eyes. She then looked at Dyolf, and a realisation hit her. "Wait… You don't… You don't know Kohaku do you?"

Dyolf closed his eyes, taking in a deep breath and sighing and for the briefest of moments, Chihiro's heart stopped in anticipation of what she was about to hear. Dyolf then opened his eyes and started straight into Chihiro's, who stared right back

"I know of Kohaku, but he was not the one who told me about you. I was sent by Yubaba,"

Chihiro looked surprised at the revelation. She had thought much about Yubaba; she had been busy concentrating on Kamajii, Lin and Kohaku. She looked back at Dyolf, who understood the message to explain more.

"Me and my family have been in Yubaba's employment for years and years. We're… assassins. We've been called upon in the past years to carry out some of her more… tasteless requests,"

"I see then," Chihiro said gravely, looking down at the floor, "you're here to kill me…" She then held up her fists and looked menacing, "I'm not going to go down without a fight though!" Dyolf reached out and pushed her hands down, looking almost amused.

"No. I'm not here to kill you. Consider this, if I was supposed to, how many opportunities have I had already?"

Chihiro thought about it for a moment, and then realised how silly it actually was to even consider that Dyolf was sent to kill her. He must have had hundreds of opportunities too, but instead, he was risking his life to help her.

"Alright then… But how does Yubaba even know I am here?" she asked suspiciously. Dyolf grinned again, clearly amused at Chihiro's performance.

"If you're going to talk to her employees as soon as you arrive, don't expect her to not find out. Apparently you ended up meeting with Mr. Waters when you were wandering around the Bath house,"

Chihiro thought back to when she first arrived, and immediately assumed that Mr. Waters was the small frogman she had met who had been guarding the ruins of the bathhouse. She looked up at Dyolf, who nodded in confirmation, as though he knew she was thinking of the guard.

"Mr. Waters is under orders to contact Yubaba about any suspicious activity, but when she heard that you," he pointed at her, "had arrived, she was very angry with Mr. Waters. She immediately called us, ordering us to find you and bring you to her, but you were proving difficult to find. It was a stroke of luck that we found you at the station,"

Chihiro looked at Dyolf, finding his story to suddenly start making more sense as it fixed up the holes in her memories. It made sense why all the Elves had been so nice and looking after her, and why they had found her. A part of her was starting to find that respect for Yubaba that had laid dormant for many years. She looked at Dyolf, who turned and scratched the back of his neck.

"Anyway… We had better get a move on if we are to make it before night-fall…"

"Wait," Chihiro said, stopping Dyolf as he turned to walk away, "What's the deal with going to Cirrus Minor then? Are we still going?" she asked, with a slight note of panic in her voice. Dyolf gave her a grin and a little nod.

"Of course we are, Yubaba lives there now!"


	9. Chapter 9: Remember A Day

**·P·U·L·S·E·**

**(A Spirited Away FanFiction)**

**Chapter.9 – Remember A Day**

Chihiro had found a new excitement as they walked to Cirrus Minor. According to Dyolf's estimation, it would take them a day or so of walking to get to Cirrus Minor. The plains were large fields that stretched out for miles and miles, where hardly anything grew apart from the odd plant or tree. Dyolf was concerned that being out in the open would make them easy targets for the Pulses, but the more they walked across the plains, the less concerned Chihiro became as to the presence of the Pulses. She was sure they'd met their match when flying in the air, whereas Dyolf was constantly on the lookout.

They had been walking for the best part of a day, yet Chihiro found that she wasn't tiring much. The excitement of reaching Cirrus Minor and meeting Yubaba, Lin and hopefully, Haku. She was anticipating it all the time as they slowly walked, and as a result, found the feeling of being tired something hard to feel.

Dyolf held out his hand, and Chihiro nearly bumped into it before she stopped. She looked at him, waiting for him to explain why he was making her stop. He didn't speak, and Chihiro looked out ahead instead, and found herself looking at the ruins of a small house. Most of the roof was gone, but there was a small section of it that hung over the house.

"We'll stay here tonight… Rest until morning and then complete the last leg of the journey"

Chihiro nodded, feeling that it was perhaps a good idea. They approached the ruins of the house, stepping over a small section of wall that still remained. There was something mysterious about the house that Chihiro couldn't quite fathom. She sat herself on the cold floor and rubbed her arms to attempt to warm them up.

"Cold?" Dyolf asked. Chihiro nodded and Dyolf turned, "We'd better get some wood…" he said. He held out his hand, and Chihiro took it as he helped her back onto her feet. They walked away from the ruins, finding a nearby tree and approaching it. Dyolf started snapping off the branches of the tree, and only after watching for a few moments did Chihiro start to do the same. After around 5 minutes of grabbing branches off of the tree did they have a large enough pile. Chihiro, her arms full of branches, followed Dyolf back to the ruins of the house, where she dropped her pile of branches in the middle of the house. Dyolf dropped his pile on top of hers, and looked around for some stones. He found some, and bent down to the pile, where he scratched the two stones against each other, creating sparks, which slowly ignited the pile of branches. In no time at all, they had a roaring fire to warm themselves up with. Chihiro sat by the fire, rubbing her hands and warming them up.

"So Dyolf, what's Yubaba doing these days?" Chihiro asked. Dyolf glanced up before answering.

"Since the Pulses moved in, everyone's had to move out of proper employment. It is unlikely anyone has a job without it being linked with anything to do with fighting against the pulses. Yubaba anticipated there being some kind of wide-scale war, and thus moved everyone out of her bath-house, and joined up with her sister Zeniba,"

Chihiro grinned momentarily. As far as she could remember, Zeniba and Yubaba were hardly the best of friends. Zeniba had even turned Yubaba's baby into a small mouse, who had accompanied Chihiro on her journey.

"Anyway, Yubaba and Zeniba are two of the main people behind the war against the pulses. They set up an operation that recruits members to join the cause, as well as having other people help by building munitions. You ask me, there's no one better for the job… Yubaba and Zeniba just have a certain… command over people. They know how to get people to do the job,"

Chihiro nodded, smiling as she remembered all the times when Yubaba made people do what she needed them too do. One of the best times for her was when Yubaba directed everyone, telling them all what to do as they tried to pull a thorn out of a stink spirit, which in reality, turned out to be the waste found in canals.

"Dyolf… you said you were an assassin for Yubaba…" Chihiro asked, wondering if she was about to ask something a little too persona, "Can you tell me… what kind of people you've killed?"

Dyolf was staring deep into the heart of the fire. To Chihiro, it looked like his thoughts were miles away, as though a part of him he'd been trying to forget was suddenly coming back to him. After moments of silence, he finally spoke, still staring into the fire.

"I killed whoever my employer asks me too kill." Dyolf said coldly. Chihiro was curious as to Dyolf's nature, as to why one like him, so kind and nice to her, would choose this line of employment.

"Is there anyone you ever regret killing?" Chihiro then asked. Dyolf didn't answer immediately, and continued to stare deep into the fire. Chihiro stared at his eyes as he avoided her gaze.

"It's time to get some sleep," he said after a while's silence. He turned around, lying down on his side next to the fire. Chihiro laid down next to the fire, turning away from Dyolf. A part of her felt bad for asking the questions, but the curious side of her was still interested in knowing. There was a very mysterious side to Dyolf. Perhaps she'll find out in the morning…


	10. Chapter 10: Bring The Boys Back Home

**·P·U·L·S·E·**

**(A Spirited Away FanFiction)**

**Chapter.10 – Bring The Boys Back Home**

The following morning had been one of silence, and Chihiro felt completely responsibly for the tense atmosphere as they cleared up after themselves. They soon left the ruins and headed towards Cirrus Minor.

"It's not far…" Dyolf said. It was the only thing he said to her, and Chihiro nodded, understanding that she'd have to wait for Dyolf to calm down before they could get back to speaking terms.

They continued their journey in silence, all the time Chihiro looking out ahead of her. As they walked, they could see the shape of a city, hanging just above the horizon. The city slowly grew in size as they came closer towards it. It wasn't long before Chihiro found herself wandering the streets with Dyolf. The city was unlike any city she had ever seen before. The buildings were tall, sure enough, but they looked ancient. Mid-century European at a guess. Everything seemed dated, yet efficient. There were stalls set up on every street corner, selling everything from fruits to meats, to jewellery to cloth. Dyolf guided her down a back alley, where they came to a door. Dyolf knocked on the door three times before a small latch was moved aside, revealing two eyes staring at Dyolf. The eyes looked expectantly at Dyolf, and Dyolf sighed as he said the password.

"Hello, hello, is there anybody in there?" Dyolf said half-heartedly. The latch closed again before the door opened, and Chihiro found herself staring at a small frogman. The frogman looked up at her, unimpressed by her presence. Dyolf barged past him and marched inside, and Chihiro politely bowed to the frogman before walking inside. She found herself inside a pub that stank of smoke from the various patrons inside. Chihiro found herself worming in and out of customers as she followed Dyolf. She suddenly tripped over, and flew forwards, landing on a waitress carrying a tray of beers. The beers went flying, landing on various customers. Chihiro looked up as a large beefy looking frogman approached her.

"You spilt beer on me," he said coldly. Chihiro felt her insides freeze up as the frogman stood in front of her, casting a shadow over her. There was a look of rage in his eyes as he reached out, grabbing Chihiro by the scruff of the neck, and holding her in front of him. "I said, you spilt beer on me!" he shouted.

"You, drop her!" said a voice. Chihiro and the large frogman both turned their heads towards the voice. Chihiro's eyes widened in surprise as she spotted Zeniba standing there, pointing at the large frogman. The large frogman looked angry for a moment as he lowered Chihiro down to the floor. Chihiro rushed past him and towards Zeniba, burying herself in her outstretched arms.

"Granny!" he exclaimed, "I knew I'd see you again" They hugged for a few moments before Zeniba slowly released Chihiro from her embrace. She looked at Chihiro, quite surprised.

"My, how you've grown!" Zeniba exclaimed. "When I last say you, you were so small!"

"Well I've grown up since then Granny," Chihiro said, smiling, "A lot in fact," Zeniba smiled, and Chihiro felt much more calmer than she had done in the morning.

"Well, come right through," Zeniba said, guiding Chihiro over to a door in the wall, "Everyone's waiting,"

As Chihiro was guided through the door, she thought whom she might see on the other side of the door. She found herself walking into a long room. There was a long rectangular table situated in the middle of the room, and many people sitting on chairs around it. At the far end of the table was Yubaba, sitting next to an empty chair. As she saw Chihiro enter, she stood up, looking surprised.

"Chihiro," she exclaimed, "So good to see you made it here okay,"

Chihiro bowed politely to Yubaba, before noticing a figure running towards her.

"Chihiro!" exclaimed the figure.

"Lin!" exclaimed Chihiro, hugging her tightly. They quickly let go of each other, and Chihiro looked at Lin. She'd grown older since she had last saw her. Her face was a bit longer and thinner, and her hair much longer.

"It's been so long!" Lin said, "How have you been?"

"I've been good Lin," Chihiro answered. There came a cough from the far end of the room, and everyone turned to Yubaba, who signalled for everyone to sit down. Lin and Chihiro took their seats next to each other, as Zeniba sat next to Yubaba, who didn't seem too happy with the arrangement. Yubaba waved her hand, and a large map floated its way into the room, landing in the middle of the table.

"Good evening everyone," Yubaba said formally, "Before I begin, let me first guide your attention to Chihiro, who comes to us from the human world,"

There were a few murmurs from some of the other people sat around the table. Chihiro could make out a number of frogmen sat around the table, as well as some of the female workers from the bathhouse. In addition, Dyolf was seated at the table, as well as a shadowy figure, and what appeared to be a racoon.

"What is this?" Chihiro whispered to Lin. Lin leaned over, whispering back.

"It's a meeting for those in the cause. All these people here are very important in the cause,"

"What do you all do then?" Chihiro asked.

"We plan our battles against the pulses. Yubaba will explain where we're at with the fighting so far,"

Sure enough, Yubaba started to explain the war. She conjured up from thin air a small stick, which she used to point at the map.

"As you well know, we managed to push the pulses back to beyond this point, across from San Tropez. Of course, some of the pulses have been getting back through, as Dyolf found out,"

Dyolf gave a slightly chuckle as Chihiro remembered the ambush in the air. She watched Yubaba give a slight grin before returning back to the diagram.

"These small raids are nothing to worry about. The worst we had was the one on the train apparently, but that was easily cleared up, right?" she said, guiding her gaze to the racoon-like person. The racoon-like person gave a nod to Yubaba, who smiled before once again, returning to her diagram.

"At the moment, the pulses are here, hiding in the Valley of Ruomlig. Apparently, they have a fortress built there. There are a few more scattered around the place, but if we can attack here with all our force, then we should be able to scare the rest of the pulses back into the underworld,"

"Then why don't we do it?" a frogman asked, standing up, "We've been sitting here with our thumbs up our arses listening to how the pulses are there every day, yet we seem to be doing nothing about it!"

Yubaba looked sternly at the frogman before sighing. She gestured for the frogman to sit down, and gave a small glance at Chihiro. Chihiro instantly knew that there was a bad reason why they couldn't storm the place.

"The reason why we cannot just simply storm the place, is because the pulses intercepted one of our armies. They're being held hostage there,"

There was silence from the frogman who had stood up. Chihiro's stomach churned.

"Whose division?" Lin asked, raising her hand. Yubaba sighed, looking angry with herself. Zeniba then stood up, patting her twin sister's back before answering Lin's question.

"Kohaku's division…" Zeniba answered. There was a look of shock from many of the people within the room, but none more so shocked than Chihiro. Without realising she was doing it, she stood up, facing Zeniba and Chihiro.

"Then we have to rescue them! We have to go in there and help them, now!" she shouted. Yubaba and Zeniba looked at her, shocked and confused at the same time.

"Chihiro, I don't think you understand the severity of the predicament we are in. I understand you want to help your old friend, but you should leave it with those who understand what's happening here," Yubaba said sternly. Chihiro frowned at her. She felt like she was being treated like a small child again.

"Yubaba, I want to help Kohaku. You should understand that no matter what, I'm going to go help him, and I'm going to bring back all the boys as well,"

There was some muttering from those around her, but Yubaba and Zeniba stayed silent. Lin was grinning to herself. This was exactly the kind of thing Chihiro would do. Concentrate on a mission and do anything she can to complete it. Yubaba looked quite taken back by Chihiro's insistent to help.

"Very well…" Yubaba said finally, "But by no means are you doing this alone… I hope you understand the risk involved in this,"

"I understand perfectly," Chihiro said. Yubaba nodded, though a part of her didn't quite believe her.

"Very well… Everyone," she said, addressing everyone in the room, "We have a new agenda on our hands. Right now we need to plan a mission of the utmost importance, and I would appreciate everyone's co-operation,"

Chihiro smiled. Inside, she was glad that she was now finally able to do something to help with the cause. Though in another part inside of her, there was a hint of worry. Kohaku could be in serious danger, and there was every chance that she might not be able to help him…


	11. Chapter 11: Lost For Words

**·P·U·L·S·E·**

**(A Spirited Away FanFiction)**

**Chapter.11 – Lost for Words**

The meeting had been a success, and Chihiro found herself in the company of old friends. Yubaba had put together a team, including Lin and Dyolf. Their orders were to slowly creep around to the valley of Ruomlig, infiltrate the fortress, and somehow get Kohaku and his division out. Yubaba wasn't particularly fond of the plan, but Chihiro's insistence made it impossible for her to argue. Chihiro was just assuming that they'd just kill any Pulse who stands in their way, but as they slowly made their way to San Tropez to gather resources; she found doubt in her mind.

"So what've you been doing all these years?"

Chihiro woke up from her small daze, looking around and finding Lin looking at her, smiling. Chihiro smiled at her.

"Just stuff. Writing mostly," she answered.

"What kind of stuff?" Lin asked, grinning. Chihiro couldn't help but grin as well. There was something about Lin, which just made everything seem so much easier. She had watched over and looked after her when she had first arrived in the world, and now she was risking her own life to help her again.

"Just fantasy novels really. It's a long story really, but basically few years back I just started writing stories about my experiences I had here. It was all exciting stuff actually. I managed to get them all published, and pretty soon I found myself receiving awards for my stories,"

"Well, congratulations to you then!" Lin exclaimed, patting Chihiro on the back, "Nice to see you've grown up finally,"

Chihiro smirked at Lin, who stuck her tongue out back. They both laughed together, making Dyolf turn around and look at the oddly. They laughed more until Dyolf turned around, shaking his head.

"So what's Yubaba got Dyolf doing for you?" Lin asked, watching Dyolf as he guided them towards San Tropez.

"He's protecting me I think," Chihiro answered, "Did you know he's an assassin?"

Lin smirked again at Chihiro.

"Yeah. Everyone knows. If you ask me, I think he's a bit uptight. Attractive, but uptight,"

Chihiro watched as Lin stared at Dyolf. She smirked to herself as theories swarmed their way into her head. It was becoming obvious that Lin was at the very least attracted to Dyolf. Though it seemed that Dyolf wasn't the kind to be bothered by this kind of development.

"We're here," Dyolf said.

Chihiro had been so busy talking to Lin that she hadn't noticed the view ahead of them. She found herself staring at another town; only this one was pretty big. There were some large buildings within the town, and many houses. Dyolf led them into the town, and they quickly found themselves in an area densely populated by buildings. There were a number of back alleys, and Chihiro couldn't help but be reminded of Cirrus Minor. The only difference was that these buildings were much smaller. They then walked out of the back alley, and Dyolf led them across the street and over to a building. A faded sign resting on the building read out 'San Tropez Armoury', and Chihiro gulped as they walked inside. The image she was expecting to see was rows and rows of shelves, all holding guns, but instead, there were shelves on the walls, holding not just some firearms, but an assortment of other weapons too. There was what appeared to be a mace hanging on hooks on one side of the wall, and a number of swords. She wandered over to the guns, noticing that they were the old kind of guns.

"Yeah, we could do with some firearms," Dyolf said to the shop owner, a small looking creature with large eyes, "We could do with some handguns if you have them,"

The shop owner nervously guided Dyolf around the room, showing Dyolf all the kinds of weapons they had. There were some handguns not completely dissimilar to the ones pirates would use, as well as the two handed guns. Dyolf seemed pleased by the handguns, and asked Chihiro and Lin if they would need any.

"I've never used a gun before…" Chihiro said weakly. Dyolf raised an eyebrow as he gave Lin a glance.

"Well, I'd rather you have one anyway. Who knows what'll be facing us," Dyolf said. Chihiro nodded, understanding full well what Dyolf meant. Even she knew she'd rather be armed with a weapon she had never used, than to not be armed at all. In the end, Dyolf purchased a number of firearms in a variety of sizes. He passed the smallest ones over to Chihiro and Lin, who strapped them to their sides. Dyolf grinned as he strapped two smaller ones to his sides, as well as the larger ones to his back.

"Impressive," Lin commented. Dyolf gave a friendly wink as they left the shop, armed for their journey. Chihiro felt uneasy at the prospect of carrying a gun. The only gun she had ever used was the machine gun on the plane, and even then it wasn't such a brilliant experience. The gun was weighing down on her side, as though it was the weight of guilt of what she was going to do.

"Dyolf… Can you tell me… Are the pulses evil?"

They all stopped in their tracks. Lin looked at Chihiro, intrigued by the question. Dyolf turned and faced her, placing his hands on Chihiro's shoulders.

"Chihiro, what you have to remember is that the pulses are the souls who were sent to the underworld. When they were in your world, they were evil. They were murderers, rapists, and thieves. They were the kind of people whose crimes were so extreme, that they were unforgivable, and as a result, they were sent to the underworld to die,"

Chihiro didn't answer, she was lost for words. She was unsure of what exactly to say. Her stomach lurched with the knowledge of exactly the kind of people the pulses were. It made the idea of harming them if needed, all the more easier. But there was a part of her, which couldn't face up to the idea of killing something, even if they were evil on the inside. When she had fought against the planes, the pulses there had parachutes, which meant they were never in any real harm. But these pulses, if confronted by them, meant that she'd have to shoot them, which could kill them. At the moment, she was unsure whether or not she would be able to do it.

"Chihiro, you okay?" asked Lin. Chihiro looked up at Lin, who was looking concerned. Chihiro was silent, but smiled and nodded. Dyolf was already walking away, off towards their mission. Chihiro and Lin smiled to each other as they double-paced up towards Dyolf. Chihiro decided to reserve judgement for now. When the time comes, she'll know what to do.


	12. Chapter 12: Fearless

**·P·U·L·S·E·**

**(A Spirited Away FanFiction)**

**Chapter.12 – Fearless**

The walk to the Valley of Ruomlig was proving to be a more treacherous journey than any of the travellers could have anticipated. Even Dyolf, who knew the stretches of land better than anyone else, couldn't help but find himself annoyed with their progress. He informed the others that under different circumstances, they could have made the journey in less than a day. However, with the Pulses running around, the quick route to the Valley was indeed blocked, thus Dyolf had to take them the long way around. After 3 days of walking, Chihiro was finding herself tired and irritable. If she wasn't so intent on rescuing Kohaku, she would have probably given up entirely. She found that forcing herself to think of Kohaku, and the importance of rescuing him was enough to keep herself going on with their mission.

On the fourth day of walking, Dyolf informed Lin and Chihiro that they were now getting close to the Valley of Ruomlig. The revelation from Dyolf gave each and everyone new found optimism, and even Chihiro was cheering up. Their mission was finally coming to an end, and soon Kohaku would be safe with his own people again. It was midday by the time the group came close to the valley, and Chihiro could see their destination looming up in the distance. They could see in the distance a dip within the ground, visible only by the shadows cast upon the green grass. As they got closer, they could see the dip went further down into the ground, taking with it the green grass. Soon enough they were at the valley's summit, looking down into it. It was a spectacular sight, with green grass going up and down both sides, before it turned into rocks. It was like a corridor leading down into the ground. Dyolf stood in front of the group, staring down into the valley.

"This will easily be the most treacherous part of our journey," he said in a foreboding voice, "This entire area is under the Pulse's control. We need to be extra cautious here."

He stood still, not leading the way through the valley. Chihiro stepped forward but felt as Lin put her hand out, stopping her from walking ahead. Chihiro looked up and noticed Dyolf was in deep thought, obviously trying to work out a strategy. After what seemed like a long time he finally turned to the others.

"The way I see it, we do not have that many options. We are disadvantaged in our attempts to rescue the others. You'd disagree with me, but I'd have no guilty conscience if we were to turn around and head back now,"

Chihiro clenched her fist, readying herself. Lin noticed the gesture and shook her head at her, as a warning for her not to do anything to drastic. Dyolf continued his lecture.

"The only real option we have is to be careful as we track our way through the valley. The further down we go, the more rocky the journey becomes. No doubt though the Pulses would have set up patrols in order to prevent anyone getting too close. We need to be on our guard, constantly,"

Upon saying this, Dyolf took out his gun, holding it in front of him. The gesture was all too obvious, and Chihiro and Lin both took out their guns too. Dyolf slowly walked ahead, leading them down into the valley. Chihiro felt that the beauty of the landscape was being ruined by the sense of foreboding danger that was being felt by the group. The journey did indeed become treacherous, and as the green grass turned into brown rocks and dirt, she found herself slipping more and more as she tried to tackle the rough terrain. Suddenly Dyolf held up his hand, and Chihiro stopped dead, her heart beating. Dyolf pointed up ahead, and Chihiro looked ahead, watching as two figures slowly walked down the valley. Chihiro could feel Lin's breath on the back of her neck.

"Pulses..." Dyolf whispered. Chihiro nodded, and watched as Dyolf reached over his back, taking one of the longer guns he had purchased. There was a scope attachment on the gun, and Chihiro watched as Dyolf put the scope to his eye and watched the Pulses. Chihiro could see in the distance as they walked around for a moment or two. They were both armed with weapons, but instead of heading towards Dyolf, Lin and herself, they turned around and walked the opposite way. Dyolf put down the gun, letting out a large breath of air.

"Scouts..." he muttered, "Looking out for people like us..."

"They didn't spot us, did they?" Lin asked nervously. Dyolf shook his head.

"From the looks of it, they didn't spot us. But what worries me is that they turned around, and abandoned their post..."

"Perhaps they were just wandering away from their original post?" Chihiro suggested. Dyolf shrugged his shoulders.

"Perhaps, but it is unlikely. The Pulses have become highly organised, and would most likely place look outs all over the valley, which could suggest one other thing..."

"And that is?" Chihiro asked apprehensively, worried about finding out.

"They did spot us, and are getting reinforcements..."

Chihiro shot her head around, spotting exactly what Dyolf had only just revealed. Lin, Dyolf and herself found a group of ten pulses bearing down upon them all. In amongst all the confusion, Chihiro found herself knocked out cold by a Pulse as she was hit on the head. She watched as the others were also beaten and captured, before her vision completely faded away.


	13. Chapter 13: Arnold Layne

**·P·U·L·S·E·**

**(A Spirited Away FanFiction)**

**Chapter.13 – Arnold Layne**

Chihiro woke up with a start. As she leant forwards on the spot, she immediately knew something had gone horrible wrong. Her head surged with pain as brief memories flooded her mind of the last moments she had before unconsciousness struck her. She looked around, finding herself with a chain on her leg, linking her with a heavy metal ball. She tugged on the chain for a moment, realising instantly how futile it would be to even attempt to break free of the chains. Sighing to herself, she looked around, seeing Dyolf sitting in the corner, his legs stretched out in front of him, which are chained to the same weighted ball Chihiro was chained too. She looked around frantically, trying to find Lin, only to see her lying sprawled across the floor, also chained up. Chihiro rushed over, kneeling down by her side.

"Lin! Lin!" she exclaimed, shaking her gently to try wake her. Lin moaned for a moment, rolling over briefly. Her eyes opened and Chihiro watched as she flickered into consciousness. Lin groaned as she brought her hand to her head, rubbing it gently.

"Oh god…" she said, "My head… It hurts so much…"

She closed her eyes for a moment, waiting for the pain to subside. She then opened her eyes after a while, looking up at Chihiro.

"Where are we?" she asked. Chihiro sighed.

"I don't know… I just woke up and… well, here we are."

She looked around again, noticing the environment itself. They were in a very dark room, the only source of light coming from the wall opposite them. Chihiro squinted her eyes, and noticed there were iron bars separating them from the wall with the light. It then dawned upon her that they were locked inside a cage. Breathing heavily, she looked around again, and noticed more bars to her left. There seemed to be many cages all lined up along the wall, each caging up something different. In the cage next to them, Chihiro could see what looked like Frogmen, all with long sad faces. Chihiro crawled over, reaching the bars and sitting up, trying to attract the attention of the frogmen inside.

"Hey there…" she whispered. A frogman looked up, and he looked surprised.

"A human? In here?" he exclaimed, "What in heaven's name?"

"Where are we?" Chihiro interjected. The frogman looked surprised at being asked such a question so quickly. He smiled for a moment, as though about to laugh at the question, until he realised that Chihiro was not joking. He then looked grave as the smile on his face disappeared.

"We're in their encampment. The Pulses… You were captured, right?"

Chihiro thought about the question. She remembered seeing figures coming up at them, knocking them all unconscious, and then waking up. She nodded her head, assuming that it was true. The frogman shook his head.

"Well, that's all there is to it…" he said, "Once you're in, there's no getting out."

"But, wait a minute!" shouted Lin who had been listening to the conversation, and was now crawling over, "We can't stay here, we've got to get out as soon as possible!"

"Get out!" laughed the frogman, looking amused at the notion. "Didn't you hear me? There is no way out of here!"

Chihiro sighed, sitting back and feeling heavy in her heart. She had made a grave mistake dragging Lin and Dyolf into all of this. She cradled her head in her hands, trying to force herself to think of what to do. She then looked up, turning back to face the frogman again.

"Wait!" she said, getting the frogman's attention. "Tell me, are the cage doors ever opened?"

The frogman looked at her oddly, as did Lin. Chihiro waved Lin away, trying to focus on the matter at hand. The frogman thought about the question for a moment.

"Occasionally. All of us are taken out for some time in the exercise yard. We've also got the one meal a day we get. But we're heavily guarded. There are no loopholes, and believe me, we have tried."

"Don't be so sure of that," said Dyolf, who had been standing behind Chihiro for sometime. "You're looking at this objectively. As it is, we're not looking to escape from here. We're just trying to find someone,"

The frogman looked up at Dyolf, as though getting himself ready to argue against Dyolf. But the sight of Dyolf made the frogman sit back on his spot.

"Do you know someone of the name of Kohaku?" Dyolf asked. Chihiro and Lin both looked up, looking shocked. The frogman was also shocked, and Chihiro could see swear pouring down his forehead.

"Yes… Of course we do, who doesn't know him?" he said. "We were part of his division… It was going to be a smooth operation. We were going to ambush them. We had it all planned, but we were betrayed."

"By who?" asked Dyolf. Chihiro could feel her heart beating in her chest.

"By Arnold Layne…" the frogman said. Chihiro looked confused, not knowing who Arnold Layne was, but behind her, she could hear Dyolf taking in a sharp intake of air.

"Whose Arnold Layne?" she asked. Dyolf looked down, answering the question instead.

"Arnold Layne was one of our greatest military leaders. Before your first arrival here, Arnold Layne had managed to earn his status as one of the greatest military leaders of our time. He was known for his tactical way of combating any army that opposed him."

"Why would he betray you though?" Chihiro asked.

"That's easy…" Dyolf answered, "Arnold wasn't a fool, he realised he was one of the most powerful spirits in this world. He'd been biding his time, waiting for the perfect moment to strike in order to claim what he thinks is rightfully his. When the guardian of the underworld passed away, it must have struck to Arnold that it'd be the perfect time to make his move. He'd been fooling us all for years."

"We were ordered by Arnold to strike the Pulses from above," the frogman said, "but when we started our strike, we found a counter-attack, who cut us down immediately. Kohaku began shouting orders, pretty much saving our lives. Many of us lost our lives though, and in the end we were all captured…"

"But where is Kohaku now?" Chihiro asked, pressing him for the answer.

"Kohaku is in his own special cell. From the rumours I've heard, it is deep within this fortress. Getting to it is probably harder than trying to get out of this place…"

"We still have to try though!" Chihiro said, looking angry. "There must be a way to do it…"

"Not without knowledge of this entire fortress…" Dyolf said. Chihiro frowned, feeling all hope was lost.

"If only there was some way to find out…" Chihiro said, sighing. She cradled her head in her arms, beginning to cry to herself. It was as though there was nothing they could do anymore. Then the cell felt cold, and Chihiro looked up, feeling as though there was someone else behind her other than Dyolf.

"Uhh…"


	14. Chapter 14: When The Tigers Broke Free

**·P·U·L·S·E·**

**(A Spirited Away FanFiction)**

**Chapter.14 – When The Tigers Broke Free**

Everyone turned around in shock. Chihiro, Lin, Dyolf and the frogmen in the other cages. Quite suddenly, a large figure had appeared in the cave. A shadowy ghostly figure had appeared before them, a mask upon its face with big eyes and a stretched expression of almost boredom. There were looks of shock from everyone in the room, and Dyolf and Lin all pulled pack, staying away from the figure. Chihiro however looked thoroughly pleased to see him there, and she smiled as she stood in front of him, bowing to greet him.

"It's wonderful to see you again," she said, smiling. No-Face simply leant his head forward, the corners of his mouth curling upwards.

"Wait a minute," Lin started, coming forwards, "Aren't you that crazy spirit that tried giving Chihiro things?"

"Uhh.." No-Face muttered, nodding slowly.

"You came at a good time," Chihiro said, "We could really do with your help."

Lin stepped forward, looking furious, whereas Dyolf looked intrigued.

"Wait a moment, you are not seriously considering asking this spirit to help us, are you?" Lin asked with fury.

"Of course I am!" exclaimed Chihiro, "You weren't there when you left me after the bath house, you didn't see him accompany me on my entire journey. He helped me so much, and if it wasn't for him, I probably wouldn't be here right now"

There was a silence that followed, and Chihiro looked at Lin who seemed worried. Dyolf on the other hand seemed amused with himself, but continued to stay standing against the wall. He closed his eyes in thought, whilst Chihiro turned back to No-Face.

"Can you help us?" she asked. No-Face nodded and Chihiro smiled in reply. "We need to get out of here safely, and find Haku. You might remember him. Do you think you can do that?"

There was a brief silence whilst Chihiro watched No-Face. All eyes were gazed upon him as they all waited for him to reply. Slowly he nodded and Chihiro beamed in joy. Lin looked apprehensive whilst Dyolf did not answer.

"Oh thank you," Chihiro said. No-Face nodded and slowly walked away, fading out as he did so. There was an loud sigh from Lin who stepped forward to Chihiro.

"Oh great and now look," she said angrily, waving her arms, "he's gone and disappeared. Probably going to go get some knives to stick in our eyes…"

Everyone looked at Lin in confused. Who stood there with a smirk curling at the corners of her mouth. Chihiro raised her eyebrow with a grin and Lin instantly began laughing. Chihiro joined in with her whilst Dyolf simply smirked for a brief moment. Lin smile before sighing resuming her concerned look.

"In all seriousness though, I don't think he is to be trusted." she said.

Chihiro said nothing, instead wandering to the other side of the cell. She looked out of the bars separating herself and the corridor leading out of the room. Out of the corridor, she could see a light, lighting up another room. She could see the shadow of a guard being cast upon the wall. She sighed, realising how impossible it would actually be to escape the fortress they were trapped inside. Lin walked over, sensing Chihiro's discomfort.

"Don't worry. We'll be okay. We'll find a way out of here," she said. Chihiro turned around, feeling heavy-hearted.

"But how exactly? We're at a critical disadvantage here. We're unarmed, outnumbered and trapped inside a cell we cannot escape from. I'm not sure what ideas you've got exactly,"

Lin opened her mouth to speak, trying to come up with some response that would make everything better. But her brain provided her with nothing that would suffice. She closed her mouth and sighed.

"I'm sorry Lin," Chihiro said, realising that she had upset her, "but it is true. I'm not sure how we can get out of this"

"No," Lin responded, "You are right. I just don't like giving up hope,"

"I never said I was giving up," Chihiro said. "I just-"

She stopped talking, her attention being grabbed by some activity in the corner of her eye. She turned around, grabbing the cell bars with her hands and leaning as far forward as to see down the corridor. The shadow cast upon the wall in the other room had moved, and from the looks of it, it was putting up some form of fight. Lin rushed over to Chihiro's side, watching what was happening. Dyolf was still in the corner of the room, paying very little attention to the proceedings. The frogmen from the adjacent cells were all interested now, and suddenly a figure stepped towards them.

"No-Face!" Chihiro exclaimed. No-Face slowly walked over to them. There was the same vacant expression on his face as he put his arms through the bars of the jail cell. He held out his hands and the others all crowded around it, watching as a number of keys suddenly began to appear.

"You got us the keys!" Chihiro exclaimed, "Thank you so much!"

Dyolf immediately rushed over and began examining the keys.

"God, you got us everything," he said. He then grinned as he picked up one key in particular, "Though truth be told this one would've been the only one we need. It's a master key,"

"How can you tell?" Lin asked sceptically. Dyolf turned to her, a smirk stretched across his face.

"Oh I have my ways. What matters is that with this we should be able to go anywhere within the complex… providing…"

"Providing what?" Chihiro asked.

"Providing that this key isn't just the master key to the jail cell complex."

Chihiro groaned whilst Lin slapped her head. Dyolf looked at them both oddly.

"If you've said that, then it must certainly be correct," Chihiro said, "which means finding Kohaku won't be so easy. Impossible perhaps…"

"Uhh… Uhh…" No-Face muttered. Chihiro looked up and watched as No-Face turned his head towards the exit. Chihiro looked at the exit, wondering what No-Face was trying to tell her, before she realised.

"No-Face, do you know where Kohaku is?" she exclaimed, full of excitement. No-Face nodded and Chihiro jumped with joy, grabbing Lin and hugging her tightly.

"Oh my god, we've nearly done it! We've nearly found him!"

Lin smiled, hugging Chihiro back, whilst Dyolf grinned, letting the mini-celebration continue for a moment. He then went towards the cell door, putting the key inside and unlocking the door, freeing them all.

"Come on girls," Dyolf said, "Let's get our boy out of here,"


	15. Chapter 15: High Hopes

_**·P·U·L·S·E·**_

_**(A Spirited Away FanFiction)**_

_**Chapter.15 - High Hopes**_

_Dyolf stood by the cell door as the girls rushed outside. He then went through himself and set about freeing each of the other prisoners. As he did so he was praised by all of the prisoners, each thanking him. Some of the frogmen swore their allegiance to him and their cause. Soon enough the group, including Chihiro, Lin, Dyolf and No-Face, also consisted of 12 frogmen all eager to help out as best as they could._

"_No-Face," Dyolf said, immediately taking charge of the situation, "can you show us the way to Kohaku?"_

_No-Face nodded once, before turning and walking away from the group. The others all followed him, the tension building up as they began to make their escape. Chihiro's heart was beating incredibly hard inside her chest. A part of her was amazed at what was actually happening, what it was she was doing. This amazement fuelled her adrenaline that rushed through her, making her feel invincible. However, there was also a fear running through her. Fear of being caught._

_They left the corridor, and the first thing they noticed was the unconscious body of one of the bandits. Dyolf held up his hand, stopping them all as he knelt down to the guard's level. This was the first real close look they had had of any of the Pulses. He held out his hand over the guard, hovering it above the body as he moved it up towards it's head, and down towards it's feet. He then moved his hand out of the way._

"_It's a shame you know," Dyolf muttered, shaking his head in a sorrowful way. _

"_What is?" Chihiro asked, kneeling down next to him._

"_All of these people. These Pulses. They're all souls that have been led astray. They mean not to, but it happens. Sometimes circumstances in our lives lead us to make the wrong decisions, and in the end we become the very things we fear,"_

_Chihiro looked towards Lin, who simply shrugged her shoulders._

"_Did you know him?" Chihiro asked Dyolf. Dyolf shook his head._

"_No. But I know his life story."_

_Chihiro looked towards Lin who knelt down beside her._

"_There are many abilities the Elves have," Lin began, "One of which is being able to see into a being's past life."_

"_So Dyolf knows everyone's past life?" Chihiro asked, confused by what she was being told. Both Lin and Dyolf shook their heads._

"_You misunderstand me." Lin said, "It's not obligatory knowledge, it's something they're able to find out. Dyolf could hover his hand over me and tell me what happened in my past life if I allowed him too,"_

"_So why doesn't he?" Chihiro asked._

"_Because I won't let him," Lin said, "Like there are ways to delve into people's minds, they are ways to stop them. If you want it in layman's terms, look at it like… Dyolf can read minds, providing the person's mind is being blocked by the person themselves,"_

_Chihiro nodded, vaguely understanding it. There was a lot of it that confused her, that made no sense to her. She decided to reserve judgement and understanding for later and ask about something else._

"_So who was he?" Chihiro asked._

"_A poor boy who had unfortunate circumstances. Born into an unloving family, lived on the streets where the only survival he was taught was one of violence and thievery. This could have been so easily avoided if he had been born to someone who loved him, but instead he wasn't, and he became something else entirely."_

_Dyolf put his head down, muttering indecipherable words. Chihiro put her head down too, out of respect. After a few moments Dyolf stood back up, turning to No-Face. _

"_Take us to Kohaku," he said. No-Face nodded again, and they all began following him. Chihiro followed behind Dyolf, who was following No-Face. They past through many corridors, all connecting hundreds of rooms together. They suddenly stopped at the end of one corridor, watching as a guard was up ahead, blocking the way._

"_What do we do now?" Chihiro whispered. Dyolf shushed her, and Chihiro stepped back. He looked around, finding a door opposite them. He peered inside it before opening it wide open and rushing everyone inside. Once everyone was in, he closed the door and whistled loudly. Chihiro felt her heartbeat increase again as she guessed what was happening on the other side of the door. Dyolf was stood behind the door, his arms held high above him. The door slowly opened and the guard walking inside, spotting all of the prisoners. He opened his mouth to scream but Dyolf brought down his fists upon him, striking him hard on the head and knocking him out. Dyolf immediately shut the door as he dragged the guard across the room. _

"_Right, he's got a crossbow, if no one minds I think I'll hang on to that, as well as the spare ammo clip,"_

"_Does he have anything else?" one of the frogmen asked. Dyolf looked, checking it's pockets._

"_Pocket knife," he answered, passing it over, "and some cigarettes and a lighter if anyone is interested,"_

_One of the frogmen leapt forward, grabbing the cigarettes and lighter from Dyolf. Everyone looked at him oddly, as he shrugged his shoulders, taking out one of the cigarettes and lighting it up. He took one drag before Dyolf plucked it out of his mouth and threw it on the floor._

"_We're going to get noticed if you start stinking of smoke," Dyolf said bluntly, "So for now leave it aside,"_

_The frogman looked huffed as Dyolf finished searching the body. There were no other weapons on him, so Dyolf asked for the frogman with the knife to join him up front. They all left the small room and began walking through the fortress again. Chihiro kept close to Dyolf, feeling apprehensive._

"_Do you have any idea of where we are going?" Chihiro asked._

"_Somewhat," Dyolf answered. Chihiro stared at him, waiting for him to say more, but he never did. They all continued to follow No-Face, who seemed to be leading them deeper and deeper into the fortress. They suddenly stopped at the end of a corridor, and Dyolf stepped forward, looking around a corner. He immediately pulled his head back, frowning to himself._

"_What is it?" Chihiro asked. Dyolf didn't answer straight away. He was too busy thinking of a solution to the problem he had just realised. Chihiro stepped forward, placing a hand on Dyolf's shoulder. _

"_I've… found Kohaku…" Dyolf said faintly. Chihiro felt her heart raise up inside her, her hopes lifting up before they were brought down by a feeling of apprehension. She realised that Dyolf had found Kohaku, but he wasn't in a good way. Immediately she rushed over and looked around the corner._


	16. Chapter 16: A Great Day For Freedom

**·P·U·L·S·E·**

**(A Spirited Away FanFiction)**

**Chapter.16 - A Great Day for Freedom**

The sight Chihiro had seen had weighed down heavily upon her heart. She struggled to hold back tears as Lin gently held her in her arms. She quietly sobbed, watched over by those who had helped her. Dyolf stepped over, compassionately placing a hand upon her shoulder. Chihiro looked up, and noticed a face of determination.

"We'll save him," Dyolf said, with a hint of anger in his voice, "we'll save him from what they have done,"

Chihiro stood up, wiping the tears from her eyes. She smiled as they then leapt forward, grabbing Dyolf in a gentle embrace. Dyolf paused for a moment, unsure of what to do. He then awkwardly patted Chihiro on the shoulder again. Chihiro laughed for a moment.

"Your heart is in the right place," she said, "and I am glad you're willing to help,"

Dyolf said nothing and instead coughed awkwardly. He then addressed everyone, who all looked at him, waiting to see what he had to say.

"Gentlemen," he began, "this is surely going to be a test for all of you here. Sure, we have found Kohaku, but getting him out is going to prove to be one of the most difficult things we will possible face while we are here. I therefore ask for all of your help. Will you help us?"

Everyone nodded their heads, agreeing to help. Dyolf smiled a menacing smile, as though he was formulating a plot to help the situation. He then winked at Chihiro, who smiled back.

"Right… we need to split up. Frogmen, split into pairs, that'll make six groups of you. Lin, you will go with No-Face, and Chihiro will go with me. What we are all going to do is split up, what we'll then do is…"

Dyolf explained every detail of the plan. His plan relied mostly on luck of everyone being able to defend for themselves, as well as other unknown facts that Dyolf was counting on. However, he explained other details, should some part of the plan fail. In the end every group knew what they would be doing, and slowly each group split up, leaving Lin, No-Face, Dyolf and Chihiro standing in the corridor.

"Chihiro, you'll come with me?" Dyolf asked. Chihiro nodded, and Dyolf smiled. He then turned to Lin and No-Face.

"I need you two to create a distraction." Dyolf commanded, "The frogmen should be in position in 5 minutes. You'll create the signal."

"What is the signal?" Lin asked.

"You'll know what to do," Dyolf said mysteriously. He then rushed off, followed by Chihiro. They rushed down the corridor, turning various corners and rushing up stairs. Dyolf held up a hand, stopping Chihiro in her tracks.

"Are you sure you know what you are doing?" Chihiro asked cautiously.

"Of course," Dyolf answered. "I'm counting on the frogmen finding their way. In the confusion and chaos, we should be able to slip in there and grab Kohaku. It'll be bloody, but it's the only plan we have. Once we regroup, we'll be able to get out of here,"

Chihiro nodded. There was so much that Dyolf was not telling her, but she trusted him. She knew that he had throught through every possible plan, and this was their best one. She suddenly screamed as Dyolf struck a guard who had just turned the corner towards them. It wasn't a moment after before he had struck down another one. Dyolf dragged the two unconscious Pulses towards him, stripping it of its armour.

"Wear this Chihiro," he said, handing her the armour the Pulse was wearing, "it should fit you,"

Chihiro slipped into the armour. It was made of a bronze metal, and was held together with leather straps and buttons. It was clunky and uncomfortable to wear. She finished by placing a crudely designed helmet onto her head that covered her face. She watched as Dyolf slipped into his armour with considerable ease. He then picked up the spear that one of the Pulses had dropped. Chihiro repeated this action for herself, holding a long metal spear in her hands. It was slightly heavy and awkward to hold upright.

"Just follow my lead," Dyolf said calmly, "soon it will all be over,"

Dyolf led the way, walking calmly down the corridors. Chihiro followed behind, trying to act almost militant. Numerous times they passed by other Pulses. Chihiro couldn't help but wonder how long it would take for them to notice that the prisoners had escaped, and that there was a small number of unconscious Pulses lying around the corridors. Suddenly Dyolf grabbed her, pulling her into a small alcove.

"What is it?" Chihiro tried asking

"Shh!" demanded Dyolf, who hid himself further into the darkenss of the alcove. Chihiro could hear the sound of someone talking. The voice was highly refined, someone with a lot of charisma, or power.

"The prisoners have escaped?" the unknown figure was saying.

"Yes my lord," another figure said, sounding more raspy than the other figure, "I don't know how, but they all escaped and are roaming free,"

"No matter… They are of no use to me. We still have our main prisoner though right?"

"Why of course, he's still tied up, like you left him,"

"Excellent, excellent… Carry on then."

The figures had walked away and turned down the corridor. Chihiro was breathing deeply, but not as deeply as Dyolf. She could hear anger in his breathing. Without a word, he then grabbed her, and they began their marching down the corridors. Chihiro had no idea where they were now. The entire fortress was like a maze, with interlocking corridors leading to many different places. Chihiro didn't know where they were going, but it was as though Dyolf knew where to be walking. She couldn't explain how Dyolf knew, she just only knew that he did.

"We're here," he said suddenly, walking through a door. They suddenly entered a large atrium that Chihiro recognised immediately. They were standing on a small balcony, overlooking the vast and giant room. Rows and rows of Pulses were standing in rows, all facing the north side of the room, of which was to Chihiro's left. At the north wall was the sight that had shocked Chihiro. She gapsed as she looked again, seeing Kohaku tied together by many ropes to two large pillars stretching up towards the ceiling. She looked to the right, looking at the southern wall and seeing the small door of which they were only moments ago. She then noticed a Pulse by the door, waving over to them. Chihiro understood that it must be Lin, who had managed to find herself a disguise. She then looked around, noticing a number of other Pulses who seemed to stand out, most of whom were standing on other balconies situated around the atrium. She then looked to Dyolf, who was busy watching Lin. He then nodded, and Chihiro knew the plan was to be set into action. In a heartbeat, there was sudden explosion from the southern side of the atrium, as Lin exploded one of Dyolf's concealed smoke bombs that he had hidden when captured. Suddenly, smoke bombs went off all over the atrium, and Chihiro barely had time to breath before Dyolf had grabbed her and jumped off of the balcony.

Suddenly there was chaos and anarchy everywhere. Dyolf struck a Pulse on the head with his spear, before swinging it around again, striking another unconscious. A Pulse appeared behind Chihiro, who instantly reacted by swinging around, hitting it in the stomach with the side of the spear. It fell to the ground, and Chihiro hit it once again for good measure. She watched as Frogmen began to jump down onto the Pulses, hitting them with spears, swords and clubs. Lin was busy diving through the Pulses, trying to reach Chihiro, whilst No-Face was simply eating the Pulses. It seemed that he was immune to any attack they seemed to lay upon him.

"How you doin' Chihiro?" Lin asked, swinging a club around and hitting a Pulse round the side of its head. She laughed as she then jumped before a Pulse had a chance to impale her upon her spear.

"I'm fine," Chihiro answered, thrusting her spear forward and hitting a Pulse, "they just keep on coming,"

"Come on!" Dyolf shouted, motivating his team. There were roars and screams from everyone in the atrium. "Chihiro, go get Kohaku!" He threw a small pocket-knife to her, and Chihiro ran through the Pulses, diving over and swooping under. She rushed up the small amount of steps towards Kohaku, who looked weakened. Chihiro felt her heart weigh terribly inside her as she grabbed the ropes, attempting to cut them apart. Slowly, Kohaku was coming too, and he looked up into her eyes.

"Chihiro?" he muttered, his voice weak and quiet.

"Shhh," Chihiro said, cutting the final rope apart, "we're here to get you out,"

She gently picked Kohaku up, slinging his arm over her shoulder. Slowly they walked forward, towards Dyolf, who was coming towards them.

"Time to get out of here," he said. He whistled loudly, and everyone rushed over to him. The frogmen were all lined up, looking slightly brusied, but brimming with energy. Lin stood by Chihiro's side, as did No-Face. Dyolf dug into his pocket, taking out what looked like a handful of petals, when there was a booming clash of thunder. Dyolf stopped what he was doing as he watched smoke appear out of nowhere. From out of the smoke a figure appeared, walking through the air towards them. Dyolf stretched his arms out, protecting everyone. The figure grinned to himself, standing some distance away from them. He then began clapping slowly, mocking them with each clap.

"Bravo," he said, his voice high and refined, "well done. You've certainly impressed me Dyolf,"

Chihiro could see Dyolf's eyes narrowing in anger. She then looked at the figure. He was a very tall and thin elf. He wore a grey pin-stripe suit, and had slicked back blonde hair. His eyes were a light blue, and there was something almost angelic about it, if not menacing also.

"Your plan was flawed, yet I'm surprised you made it work. Congratulations," the figure said. He then looked over at Chihiro, and his eyes widened, with a brief flicker of panic, "and who have we here?"

The figure stepped over, trying to reach Chihiro when Dyolf snapped.

"Don't come any closer Layne!" Dyolf shouted. Arnold Layne stopped in his tracks, stunned for a moment, before grinning to himself.

"Whatever you say Dyolf, no doubt you don't want your friends to be hurt right?" Arnold said menacingly. Dyolf's eyes narrowed as he tried to work out what to do. Arnold noticed this and grinned again. "Oh, trying to plot an escape? What have you got planned? If you really think you'll have time to-"

"NOW!" Dyolf shouted. In a flash, everyone huddled close towards Dyolf who threw the petals in the air, drawing a straight line with them. Arnold dug into his pocket, taking out a knife and throwing it at Dyolf, who quickly vanished into the air with the entire group. Chihiro watched as their world flew by in a kaleidoscope of colours. Everything was rushing by at an incredible speed, and Chihiro couldn't help but feel exhilarated by the entire experience.

The world suddenly materialised, and Chihiro recognised themselves at the pub at Cirrus Minor. She looked around, noticing the frogmen all hugging and cheering with themselves. Kohaku was still wrapped around Chihiro's shoulders and was looking even weaker than he had done before. Lin rushed over, taking Kohaku from her.

"I'll make sure he's okay," Lin said. Chihiro nodded and watched as Lin gently took Kohaku away into another room. She then looked down at Dyolf, smiling as she placed her hand on his shoulder. She suddenly recoiled in fear as she noticed the large knife protruding from it.

"Dyolf! You're hurt!" she exclaimed. Dyolf stood up, frowning to himself. He then reached his hand around, pulling the knife out of his shoulder. He cried out in pain as he wrung it free of himself, throwing it to the floor.

"Damn him," he said, "he got my good arm…"

"Are you okay?" Chihiro asked.

"I'm fine," Dyolf answered, turning away, "I'm fine…"

Dyolf slowly wandered off into another room, leaving Chihiro to follow Lin towards Kohaku. She stepped into the room, noticing Kohaku lying down on a bed. Yubaba and Zeniba were both treating his wounds and recovering him. Lin stepped out of the room, walking over to Dyolf. Chihiro watched as they poured a medicine into his mouth, of which he spluttered and coughed. Slowly colour came back into his face and Chihiro rushed over.

"Kohaku! Are you okay? Speak to me…" she exclaimed.

"Chihiro, leave him for now!" Yubaba snapped. She was then stopped as Kohaku raised his arm, stopping Yubaba. He opened his eyes turning to Chihiro.

"Chihiro… you came to rescue me?" Kohaku asked. Chihiro nodded, holding his hand in hers. "I can't believe it… I surely don't deserve that…"

"Oh be quiet Kohaku," Chihiro said smiling. She leant over, kissing his cheek gently before leaning back and smiling again. "I'm just glad to hear you're okay-"

"Yubaba! Zeniba!" Lin shouted, rushing inside, "come quickly! Dyolf is hurt, he's been poisoned!"


End file.
